Reviews with content warning for Sexual content - Mortal Follies

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just_one_more_paige's review

adventurous funny lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

I believe I'm on a journey to slowly read through all of Alexis Hall's books - or at the very least all the ones that I can get access to through my US-based library system. I'd been looking forward to this one since pre-publication (that cover!, the witchy-fae vibes, the sapphic historical - regency, victorian, idk? - romance...all in all, yes please).

When suspiciously magical and not particularly enviable things start happening to Maelys Mitchelmore, like a dress unravelling as she's wearing it to an evening party and dessert turning to maggots in her mouth, her best friend, Miss Bickle, suggests that perhaps the cause is...supernatural. With very few alternate explanations, and no direct experience dealing with curses themselves, they turn to "less desirable" persons for help. In particular, the Duke of Annadale (the Lady Georgianna), reputed to be a witch because her family all died quickly and conveniently left her heir to a very large fortune. But as the women work together to find out more and break the curse on Miss Mitchelmore, they find out that perhaps the Duke of Annadale is unfairly accused. And in the process of facing down terrible magic and angered deities and all manner of other not-fit-for-ladies situations, Maelys and Georgianna must also face down their own feelings for each other.

If I'm being honest, this was a *little bit* of a mixed bag for me. First, the good stuff. Starting with the Prologue, and rolling all the way through the Acknowledgements and Author Bio, this is absolutely and without a doubt the most uniquely narrated book I’ve ever read. Robin, our disgraced and exiled hobgoblin narrator, was straight up hilarious and observationally sarcastic, but in a fantastically unreal/magical sort of perspective. Hall really took his normal (high quality) smart, sarcastic writing tone and stepped it up to an 11 here. #iykyk If I'm being honest, it was a lot. Like if you start reading this and the narration isn't for you, go ahead and stop. It doesn't let up. Personally, I thought it was great; the perfect type of eccentric. Plus, the combination of Hall's normal phenomenal banter, added to the pomp and properness of the historical language, made for fantastic dialogue all the way through. I also loved the creativity in all the forms the Robin takes while staying on the trail of this unfolding and dramatic story of love and magic and revenge: dust mites, candle flames, smoke wisps, mouse, a bird, etc. That was one of my favorite little details.

My biggest issue, and really the primary (and possibly only) reason for my lukewarm-ish response, is that I just never really bought into the relationship between Maelys and Georgianna. And to head off any misinterpretation, no, it is not because it was more "fade to black" than I would have liked nor because of the more straight-laced-ness of the time period it's set in. Hall met (and exceeded) my expectations on both those fronts with A Lady for a Duke. I just never really got invested in them ending up together. I think there's a chance it was related to the narrator, who (as I've said) was entertaining AF, but that style of story-telling kept the characters themselves at a bit of a distance from the reader, so I never got as emotionally invested in the outcome as I would have wanted. Also, and this is more of a me thing, the vibes from both were not really my style. I was much more here for Miss Bickle, tbh. The whimsicality and flightiness of her character is one of my favorite kinds to read. It's just so light and fun, which is perfect for what this novel was. And I do love that that same trait of loving the magical and fairy tale-based, that was generally just tolerated like one would for a child, ended up being instrumental to the HEA...don’t knock something just because it isn’t immediately important to you!

But anyways, the point I was making is that the adventure and curse-breaking and general entertainment level of this novel were great, but the romance, a fairly central aspect, never grabbed me. I think I would have been happier with a general tale of historical, slightly off-kilter (by societal standards), leading ladies taking on those magical adventures and melodramatic curse-breaking. Take from that what you will. But, just know that I still stan Hall's writing and recommend this one if it sounds like your vibes.

“I have a fondness for scenes of mortal misadventure, especially those that befall preposterously…”

“…I’ve always found strangers rather fascinating. They have such a wonderful habit of turning out to be beautiful, unexpected, deadly things.”

“I suppose that depends on what you think a witch to be. It might be better to say that I have needed, over the years, to learn a number of things about the world that other people seldom need to learn.”

“Gods are, in many ways, like sharks and, in many more ways, like cats. They are drawn to blood, and love to toy with the wounded.”

“…for her own part, was rather less sure. But it was, she was finding, a sweet unsureness. An uncertainty grounded in the hope of better, rather than the fear of worse. And that, she allowed herself to believe, made it worth pursuing.”

Content Warnings

betweentheshelves's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Not my favorite of Alexis Hall's books, but this was still a fun time! I enjoyed the overall format of the book, and the inclusion of the fantasy/magical elements along with the romance. If you enjoy authors like Freya Marske, you'll definitely enjoy this book!

The romance at the core of this story definitely takes center stage, and I loved how it evolved throughout the book around all of these different curses and such. The pacing of the book does get a little weird by the end, but since we have a narrator telling us this story, she actually acknowledges that. Which I actually found to be fun!

If you like historical fantasy romance, this is definitely the book for you. Plus, it has an absolutely gorgeous cover!

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emmy_award's review

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adventurous medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

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ladythana's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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readthesparrow's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

REVIEW

Before we begin, I must invoke the Muses–I call upon Thalia, and Erato, and, of course, my girl Calliope. I beg you, sing; grant me the patience (and the caffeine) to get through writing this review without being too much of a joyless critic.

Let’s begin with the positives.

The setting is fun, if a bit sparse on the worldbuilding. It’s a very modernized (though in a self-aware way), romanticized version of 1812 Bath/London, where the gods of yore and faeries in tales are very much real, though largely not too much of a deal. The primary inspirations for Mortal Follies seem to stem from Shakespeare plays and Roman myth, with the two primary mythological figures being a Puck-ish narrator and a minor goddess local to Bath.

Prose-wise, the style is lighthearted and a bit flowery in a lively, frolicking way. The story is told in the first person from the point of view of a fae narrator, who primarily follows Miss Mitchelmore, with the occasional diversion to trail Lady Landrake or a side character.

The characters are good, primarily because they have snappy, witty dialogue and personalities that play well off one another. My favorite, likely surprising no one, is an extremely niche side trans character who gets two-ish scenes and is the coolest character in the whole novel. Tabitha (human Tabitha, not muse Tabitha) rules and it’s a crime she didn’t get more page time.

With that, we must unfortunately pivot into the more negative of my thoughts.

Setting was too modern at times. There’s a whole conversation about ‘tinging,’ a term coined by Miss Mitchelmore’s best friend, Miss Bickle, which is defined as her desire to see two characters–or two people–end up together. What's in a name? That which we call shipping by any other name would still be completely anachronistic in a Regency era setting, even if we call it something different. I believe it was supposed to be amusing, but it was not. It was eye-roll inducing.

There’s also the issue of swear words. I’m a great proponent of the word ‘fuck;’ it’s fun, but felt out of place in Mortal Follies, especially as it got to be used so liberally. (Yes, I’m well aware the word has been around for ages–this is a Tiffany Problem sort of issue.)

'Fuck' also just feels a bit… uninspired, in this context. I’d much prefer some more interesting, funny, or clever ways of swearing or referring to intercourse than just using ‘fuck.’ Like, come on! The narrative is drawing, at least partially, from Shakespeare. Have at least a little fun with it.

Now for my biggest issue: the narrator. In the prologue, Mortal Follies is framed as a novel written by a now-mortal fae, Robin, (who, within the lore, is actually also Alexis Hall, and maybe also Puck?). Due to a quarrel with Oberon, they have to make a living by writing books.

Robin is obnoxious. While their humor is, I admit, sometimes clever, it often isn’t. Their humor--and thus, the novel's--relies too much on the whole quirky “wow being a human is sucks, what do you mean you have to pay rent, you can’t turn into mist? that’s soooo silly” gimmick. I cannot stand it.

They also constantly insert themself into the narrative in a way that wore out my welcome as soon as it came through the door. I'm fairly certain this is to set up later books, as I believe this is going to be a series.

While Robin does follow the characters to whom the most interesting things are happening, they do not, in my opinion, follow the most interesting characters. Outside of her misfortune, Miss Mitchelmore is, quite frankly, boring, and so is Lady Georgiana Landrake (if to a slightly lesser extent). The side characters--such as Mr. Caesar, a gay man of color, and Tabitha, a trans woman and priestess--are so much more interesting. My favorite moments in the book were Mr. Caesar's visit to Serena's, a sort of gay gentlemen's club/salon/coffee house, and his subsequent visit to Tabitha, because those scenes explored what it meant to be queer in the novel's world in a really interesting, nuanced, genuine way, something completely lacking from the rest of the book, which overall came off as quite saccharine and shallow in comparison.

Anyway. Speaking of queerness and our leading ladies: their romance may be slow, but it does not burn. It barely sparked. I couldn’t give two hoots about their relationship and, quite frankly, do not ‘ting’ them. Especially since I'm not much of a fan of the age gap; Mitchelmore is 19, while Landrake is 24. Not the biggest age gap there is (especially in the context of a Regency era romance rather than a contemporary romance), but it's enough of a difference for me to get a little icked out. Probably couldn’t identify much of a real personality trait for either of them. There’s lots of dialogue between them that’s good but is also clearly designed to be ‘shippable,’ if that makes sense, rather than creating any real, deep, or interesting bond between them. They barely know each other, and I barely know them, either. Quite frankly, I don't really care to.

I had a fun enough time with the first half

(which focused on solving the mystery of Miss Mitchelmore’s curse).

The second half

(which sort of? focused on the romance and on Lady Landrake's backstory, which ended up being, in my opinion, boring)

felt disconnected, dragged in pace, and fell flat. An astounding accomplishment, considering it contains

an Orpheus-and-Eurydice mini-retelling.

FINAL THOUGHTS

The folklore/mythological elements and side characters, though far more interesting, were not the focus and thus did not compensate for the irritating, intrusive narrator and unengaging romance. While I’m sure others would like the humor, I don’t go for the type of quirky fandom-y humor often used. The second half dragged. And, in my humble opinion, the book had no business being over 400 pages in the first place.

Ultimately, this book just didn’t click with me. Maybe you’ll like Mortal Follies if you love Regency era romances and are itching for a sapphic one, but I’m not chomping at the bit to recommend it.

I’m not usually a romance reader, though, so it may be a matter of taste.

Thank you to Del Rey for providing a digital ARC via Netgalley. If you are interested in Mortal Follies, you can find more information from the publishers. If possible, support indie bookshops by purchasing the novel from your local brick and mortar or from Bookshop.org.

Content Warnings

atlastheninth's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

3.5 Stars

Mortal Follies by Alexis Hall is a romance between two young ladies in the 19th century, but wicked men, curses and goddesses are standing in their way.

The story is told from a (sarcastic) hobgoblin who is observing our MCs secretly, which is fun and inventive, especially in the begging. But it did feel tedious after a while.

The story was fun, the characters were more or less cute (I don’t think I can describe them any differently, really) and the writing was fine.

But because the story is being told from this (non-human) outsider POV, I just couldn’t connect to the characters at all. I could only really guess what they were thinking, let alone feeling. And from what they were described as doing, they all seemed to be a bit stupid frankly.

It was all just very shallow.

The book has this kind of 4 part structure where the first half of the book felt like your average book: characters are introduced, things happen, climax, end. And then there is another quarter of just romance and another quarter of again things happen, climax, end. That did irritate me a bit while reading, but looking back I suppose I didn’t really mind it.

In short: Nice read, but nothing more.

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wishbea's review against another edition

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adventurous lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

A fun book told by Robin the faerie about a woman in regency England that has been recently cursed and finds her salvation with the aid of a social pariah witch/murderess. Robin's narration was my favourite part of this, I loved all his insights into the faerie/magical workings and found him charming.

I initially found Mr. Caesar and Miss Bickle quite irritating, Mr. Caesar is solely there to mistrust the Duke of Annadale and Miss Bickle was mostly very naive, however by the end of the book I cared more for Miss Bickle than Miss Mitchelmore.

The pacing was off, the main plotline is solved halfway through the book and the plot meanders around a bit and we don't get to see enough of the main relationship blossoming or even learn enough about their personalities to get invested in them. I enjoyed how Miss Bickle is so key to solving the final puzzle of the story because of her unique way of thinking, it really endeared me to her character. However the ending of the book does fall flat.

I also got the impression that we were exploring an alternate regency England because of clothing made by fairies and humans openly discussing fairy-made clothes, open worship of pagan gods, naiads, the overt presence of a Goddess, witches and magic. The world was too obviously magical for me to accept this story takes place in regency England.

I will also note, as others have, that Medusa became a monster by Athena's hand and not Apollo's. You'd really think the author, editor or publisher would pick up on something so easy to fact check.

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displacedcactus's review against another edition

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emotional lighthearted slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

I don't know why I keep reading Alexis Hall books! I always love the idea of them, but inevitably there's something lacking in the execution, something different each time. I think I have to concede that he's a perfectly good author, but just not right for me.

In the case of Mortal Follies, my issues with the book can be summed up in three points:
1. It's incredibly slow-paced and repetitive, and could have been tightened up by about 20-30%.
2. It wants to be light-hearted but also involves sacrificing animals to old gods.
3. Having Robin Goodfellow narrate the story from a distance would be GREAT in a short story or novella! He's an entertaining narrator! But having him narrate a full-length (slightly over-long) romance novel was a poor choice, IMHO, because he puts a real distance between the reader and the main characters. We never truly know what they are thinking or feeling, which makes it hard to buy the romance.

Btw, this distance also extends to the love scenes. Very low spice level here.

It does get points for depicting the fae folk in a way more in line with traditional lore than with the current genre tropes of smexy faeries.

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cozyscones's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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yourbookishbff's review

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adventurous dark funny lighthearted mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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